MC Ren
| Origin = Compton, California | Img = | Instrument = Vocals | Genre = Gangsta rap Hardcore rap | Occupation = Rapper, songwriter | Years_active = 1986 - present | Label = Ruthless, Island Def Jam, Interscope, Universal Motown, Villain Entertainment | Associated_acts = N.W.A, Eazy E, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Above the Law, Paris | URL = }} Lorenzo Jerald Patterson (born June 14, 1968) in Compton, California, better known by his stage name MC Ren, is a rapper who formed part of the group N.W.A. Biography Born and raised in Compton, he joined the gangsta rap group N.W.A after finishing his senior year at Dominguez High School. He contributed vocals on the Straight Outta Compton (1988) album as well writing several tracks after Ice Cube left the group in 1989. N.W.A became the first gangsta rap group to gain mainstream success. However, as their album Niggaz4Life reached the #1 spot on the Billboard 200 in 1991, financial conflict between Dr. Dre and Ruthless Records led to the group disbanding. Group member Eazy-E was accused of skimming money along with the group's manager. Dr. Dre left to form Death Row Records. MC Ren subsequently released his debut album with the help of Eazy-E in 1992, entitled Kizz My Black Azz. Surprisingly enough, with little commercial promotion, the album went platinum. MC Ren's next album, Life Sentence, was scrapped while he converted to the Nation of Islam (which he has since left) with guidance from DJ Train. Shock of the Hour in 1993 was released the next year. It also features the single "Mayday on the Front line" which appeared in the film CB4. MC Ren soon fell on hard times when DJ Train died in a house fire before the release of The Villain in Black (1996). The album sold relatively well for a brief period. Before leaving Ruthless Records, Ren released Ruthless for Life (1998) which proved a worthy comeback, briefly selling well. He appeared on the posse cut "Some L.A. Niggaz" from Dr. Dre's 2001 album, but only spoke the intro and did not actually rap on the track. In 2000 he appeared on the song "Hello" which featured Dr. Dre and Ice Cube on Ice Cube's War & Peace Vol. 2 (The Peace Disc) album. He joined the Up In Smoke Tour that same year just to rap this verse on this track. In addition, MC Ren released the straight-to-DVD movie entitled Lost in the Game in 2004. His most recent work has appeared on some more politically-oriented projects such as with Public Enemy, specifically Paris' album Hard Truth Soldiers Vol. 1 as well as on Public Enemy's album Rebirth of a Nation (2006). Paris did state, however, in a recent interview with Rapstation.com that "MC Ren is retired and won't be doing a full-length album as far as I know. I get at him for verses, that's about it." MC Ren appeared on the VH1 Hip Hop Honors talking about Eazy-E in the tribute to him. As of late 2007, Ren is supposed to be in work with Long Beach based rapper, RBX alongside Big Rocc. The group is called Concrete Criminals and have been promising release date for a debut album. In 2009, MC Ren finished his fifth studio album entitled "Renincarnated" which was released under his own record label Villain Entertainment on October 31, 2009. "Renincarnated" was only released in the U.S Discography * 1992: Kizz My Black Azz * 1993: Shock of the Hour * 1996: The Villain in Black * 1998: Ruthless for Life * 2009: Renincarnated References External links * * *Good guys wear black : Interview with Reginald C Dennis, published in The Source, august 1992. *MC Ren feature-length radio interview in the UK on Conspiracy Radio. Category:1968 births Category:Living people Category:African American rappers Category:African American Muslims Category:Former Nation of Islam members Category:N.W.A members Category:People from Compton, California Category:Ruthless Records artists Category:Rappers from Los Angeles, California Category:Priority Records artists Category:African American converts to Islam ar:إم سي رين de:MC Ren es:Mc Ren fr:MC Ren gl:MC Ren it:MC Ren he:MC Ren la:MC Ren nl:MC Ren pl:MC Ren pt:MC Ren sh:MC Ren fi:MC Ren sv:MC Ren